A "STONE" is a family word for a personal story or thought, not quite an essay or short story. Lake living w/5 wirehair dachshunds & my wife by retired H.S. band director - better description to follow... and lots of just nonsense thoughts unrelated to each other

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Monday, April 29, 2013

Pants

Pants. I have been wanting to write about pants - mine of course. I
taught for 38 years then added a couple more sprints into the part time world.
Depending upon who you are and when we met (if ever) my clothing
varied.

.

I couldn't tell you what I wore as a little kid. That is completely
void from my memory bank. I am sure we wore jeans. I know I wore jeans in high
school and throughout college. Sure couldn't tell you the brand or shade. Back
then, when your pants faded to light blue they were tossed. Faded or torn jeans
were not acceptable to my crowd. I can remember having an iron-on patch once.

.

There were not a lot of places to buy clothes in those days - none
of these fancy smancy clothing stores for teens that we have today IN THE MALL.
We didn't have Malls. In my family, I'd guess most pants were bought at
JC Penney or Sears. In the Panhandle we could buy upscale clothes at Dunlaps in
Lubbock - my family didn't get clothes at Dunlaps, I can tell you fer
sure.

.

Trying to think how to write this next bit. We did not wear
coveralls or overalls. Overalls had the bibs with straps over the shoulder.
Coveralls were one piece suits which Covered All. I think back to those days.
Most of the kids wore the same type of blue jeans - the colors were the
same...no blacks, no grays, no white or brown - just blue - probably Levis or
Lees or the Penneys or Sears house brand - whatever that was called. I can
remember a particular shade of blue that some friends wore back then. It was
a special and different shade of blue. I couldn't even tell you the exact shade
- y'know, having something to compare it with. But, in Levelland H.S. few
people wore that shade of blue.

.

In recent times when I pick out a new pair of jeans, if I see that
shade of blue, I will not buy it. It is not what we cool guys wore at Levelland
High School { there could be an argument here if I was really a member of the
cool crowd - let's just say for the moment that I was - just for argument's sake
}. Today I will buy faded jeans in a heartbeat - or colored jeans of different
hues - but that particular shade of blue, I just won't get it. Now, that is
dumb. I make fun of teenagers and their tastes in clothes today.... what they
"must" have. Suppose I was just as bad. Dumb, stupid kid.

.

In my first years teaching, I wore slacks, dress slacks so to
speak. It was the day of double knit pants and I had several nice pair. Leisure
suits came later. I can remember my favorite was a very dark blue pair - this
was before the flair on the bottom [bell bottoms]. Double knit was amazingly
comfy. They would stretch when you bent over. I remember buying my first pair
towards the end of college, it was a clothing store across from the Hockley
County courthouse to the west. Not Penneys or Sears. I cannot remember the name
of that store. It may have been COBBS Department store. My mom pushed me to
try a pair. I resisted. People always have to push me to make changes and
that includes buying pants.

.

Over the years I evolved out of double knit and double knit with
bell bottoms into the Docker type pants. Many of my students would only
recognize me in Dockers. My big hangup with Dockers had to do with squatting. I
would rip the zipper out all the time. I can remember doing that once during
marching band practice - I don't know if my students ever knew - when I got
inside I used 4,000 safety pins to put myself back together before the next
class came in. At times my wife would try to sew them back together - never
worked right. Still today I cringe when bending in my trousers especially if
they are Dockers.

.

Another pant stone. Teaching in Ardmore we were leaving on a trip
to Corpus. We performed in the competition ( made a I ) and traveled south to
Padre Island for our overnights. I knew that I needed to be casual for the beach
but just couldn't see myself in dress pants on the beach [ shorts were out of
the question for me ]. We went out and bought me some light blue jeans. I was
cool in my light blue jeans (not faded, but actual dyed light blue). On our
first day walking the beach, I found a nice big rock to use as a chair as my
band students frolicked in the surf. When I stood up, some mouthy kid asked me
what was on my pants. I looked. Oil / Tar. My entire "sitting area" was tarred.
I was so cool in my light blue pants with the tar on the rump. Never wore those
pants again. Never sat on a beach rock again.

.

Since my graduation { retirement } in 2004, I have evolved
back into jeans again. Yessir - that circle of life again ... I still have a few
pair of Docker types for church and special, semi-dressup times - but I wear
jeans over and over and to most places. Sometimes I feel guilty for the
casualness or appearance of casualness of it all. Most of my ex-students would
not recognize me in jeans. I was raised that teachers do not wear jeans. It is
the "old" in me.

.

Came up with a brilliant plan in 2010: retired and poor. My jeans
were getting crummy. On tax-free day we bought me 3 pair of new jeans, 3 varied
shades of blue. Using a bold, black magic marker, I wrote on the inside
waistband the words "New 2010." Those were hung up with care and worn only on
special jean occasions. 2011 tax-free day came = 3 more pair = all labeled on
the inside band "New 2011." Last August I bought 2 more pair. Now I own 8 pair
of fairly good jeans - the old ones are piled for work outside.

.

Yep, the Circle of Life thingy strikes again: this week one of my
2010 pair has a hole just above the left rear pocket. They will be moved into
the work pile for use when I don't have company - nobody needs to look at an old
guy's underwear glowing through a hole in the seat of his jeans ... now, do
they?

.

Finally for all of you who look for drama in your blug /
blog readings - is this not dramatic? Will he buy 2 or 3 new pair August, 2013?
What colors will he choose? Will other 2010 jeans grow holes or become
unwearable? This is almost as exciting as "Who Shot J.R." Others of you will
wonder when I will get a real life. I don't know the answer to that either. For
now, this will have to do. Now quit panting and go back to work.

mtz

A P.S. Was in Wal*Mart this afternoon picking up a prescription
for the spouse. Stood in line behind an older gent; he climbed out of the store
electric cart to move forward. A dappy dresser, he was wearing the skinny leg
double knit pants. They had a checked pattern in 5 or 6 different colors -
primarily red. His belt was brown with big black diamonds through accented with
bright silver eagles within. He did have a gorgeous black gnarly cane. But the
best part (if anything can be better than 50 year old double knit leftover
pants) his shoes. They were the old black tennis shoes with a white sole...high
tops, I believe. These were worn by many a high school athlete in my h.s.
days. High top black and white tennis shoes, multi-colored double knit pants
and a flash long sleeve shirt....no tie...dark baseball cap. I tried to take a
photo without being obvious - didn't work. Now I am through. See
ya.

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About Me

Retired Texas H.S. band director, spend my time here on the lake with my wife & 5 wirehair dachshunds. As an added bit, a "STONE" is a story. It is more of a short bit. Will add more later when I figure this all out. CORSICANA SWING ORCHESTRA MEMBER
Contact Jerry Ballew 903-390-1058 to get info